Cervical cancer is one of the most preventable cancers in medicine. The tools to detect it early – Pap smears and HPV testing – have existed for decades. The human papillomavirus (HPV) that causes more than 90% of all cervical cancers is identifiable in patients long before cancer develops, giving physicians a critical window to intervene.
Radiology is the branch of medicine most dependent on disciplined, systematic observation. A radiologist reviewing a chest CT does not just look for what the ordering physician suspects. The standard of care requires a thorough, methodical review of everything visible in the image — because the most important finding is often not the one anyone expected.
An echocardiogram is one of the most important diagnostic tools in cardiovascular medicine. Using ultrasound to create real-time images of the beating heart, it can detect heart valve disease, heart failure, blood clots, congenital abnormalities, and conditions that — if identified and treated promptly — are survivable. If missed, they can be fatal.
An incidental finding is an unexpected abnormality discovered during a medical imaging study that was ordered for a different reason. The term “incidentaloma” is commonly used when the finding is a mass or lesion — a nodule on the lung found during a chest X-ray for a broken rib, a lesion on the liver spotted during an abdominal CT for appendicitis, a thyroid nodule noticed on an ultrasound of the neck.
There is a persistent myth in medicine — one that doctors and hospitals sometimes invoke in their defense — that medicine is an art, not a science. The suggestion is that outcomes are unpredictable, that mistakes are inevitable, and that holding physicians accountable for errors is somehow unfair given the complexity of what they do.
If you have been harmed by a physician’s failure to diagnose, treat, or refer you appropriately, you may have heard — or may anticipate hearing — a familiar argument: the doctor was practicing “defensive medicine.” The suggestion is that any physician would have done the same thing, that the test or treatment you needed was unnecessary or risky, and that the doctor’s choices represented reasonable clinical judgment rather than negligence.
Sepsis is not an unpredictable disease—it is a medical emergency with a well-established, time-sensitive treatment protocol. The federal government requires every hospital receiving Medicare reimbursement to follow the CMS SEP-1 bundle: a standardized sequence of blood cultures, serum lactate measurements, and broad-spectrum antibiotics that must be initiated within three hours of sepsis identification.
For nearly two decades, our firm has advocated for patient safety and proactive health management. As medical technology evolves, so do the standards of care. In 2026, we have more tools than ever to make cervical cancer a “preventable” disease. If you or a loved one has suffered due to a misdiagnosis or a failure to follow these current protocols, understanding these nine steps is the first step toward justice and health.
What should have been a routine evaluation for a woman in Armstrong County turned into a harrowing battle for survival due to a series of avoidable medical oversights. In November 2021, Patricia, a 59-year-old woman, sought medical help for post-menopausal bleeding—a classic “red flag” symptom that every gynecologist knows requires immediate investigation for endometrial cancer.
While it is true that the risk of stroke increases with age, strokes in young adults, teenagers, and even children are rising. Currently, 10% to 15% of all strokes occur in people between the ages of 18 and 50. Despite this, Emergency Rooms frequently operate on an “age bias.” When a 70-year-old walks in with slurred speech, the stroke team is activated immediately. When a 25-year-old or a child presents with the exact same symptoms, doctors often look for “more likely” explanations like intoxication, migraines, or vertigo.
One day, your mother is her normal self—doing crossword puzzles, chatting on the phone, and managing her own medications. The next day, you visit and she is a different person. She doesn’t know what year it is. She is talking to people who aren’t there. She is agitated, aggressive, or unusually lethargic. Your mind immediately races to the worst-case scenarios: Is this a stroke? Is this sudden onset dementia? Alzheimer’s?
If your son woke up in severe pain or complained of sudden agony after sports practice, you likely rushed him to the Emergency Room expecting immediate answers. You trusted the doctors to rule out the most dangerous conditions first. However, far too many parents are sent home with a diagnosis of a “groin strain,” “epididymitis,” or a vague viral infection, only to return hours or days later to find that their son has lost a testicle permanently.
